Feed-water heater.



No. 7I7,494. Patented Dec. 30, I902.

C. H. ATKINS.

FEED WATER HEATER.

(Application filed Nov. 22, 1901.)

4 Sheets-Sh6ei I.

(No Model.)

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Patented Dec. 30, I902. C. H.ATKINS.

FEED WATER HEATER.

(Application filed Nov. 22, 1901.)

4 Sheets-Shed 2.

(N o Model.)

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No. 7l7,494.

Patented Dec. 30, I902.

C. H. ATKINS.

FEED WATER HEATER.

(Application filed Nov. 29, 1901.)

4 Shee-t-Shaet 3.

(No Modoi.)

m: warns PEYERS cc. PHOTOUYHD., yusnlnomn, a. c.

No. 7I7,494. Patented Dec. 30, I902.

C. H. ATKINS.

FEED WATER HEATER.

1 (Application filed Nov. 22, 1901.)

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES H. ATKINS, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

FEED-WATER HEATER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 717,494, dated December30, 1902.

Application filed November 22, 1901, Serial No. 83,240. (No model.)

To aZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES H. ATKINS, of Springfield, county ofHampden, State ofMassachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Feed-IVater Heaters, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to feed-Water heaters for general purposes, butmore particularly to feed-water heaters and purifiers for use inconnection with steam-boilers of locomotives; and the invention has forits primary object to subject the feed-water to the heating fluid orsteam repeatedly, so that the steam and Water will be intimatelycommingled and all of the heat units transferred to the water.

A further object of the invention is to inject the exhaust-steam intothe water-inlet of the feed-water heater and carry the current from theheater back to said inlet, so that the same will be circulated by and incontact with the steam a number of ti mes before passing out to' theboiler.

A further object of my invention is to replenish the feed-water chamberfrom the tank or other source automatically without the aid of a floatwhen the level therein falls below a certain point.

A further object of my invention is to connect the water-supply passagewith a circulation-passage, into which the water is entrained by theexhaust-steam or other heating fluid in such a way that the water comingfrom the feed-Water chamber in said circulating-passage will prevent afresh supply entering from the main tank or other source of supply; butwhen the level in the feed- Water chamber decreases to an extentincapable of holding such supply back the latter will be automaticallyentrained into the said circulating-passage, and consequently injectedinto the feed-water chamber until the water returning in saidcirculating-passage again becomes suflicient to hold back the freshsupply.

A further object is to provide the feed-water chamber with removablesurfaces for catching and holding the deposit, so that such chamber maybe readily cleaned by the removal of said plates.

With these ends in view my invention consists in certain features ofnovelty in the construction, combination, and arrangement of parts bywhich the said objects and certain other objects hereinafter appearingare attained, all as fully described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the said drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in verticalsection, of a locomotive and tender having my improved feedwater heaterapplied thereto. Fig. 2 is a plan section thereof, taken on the line 2 2of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a transverse section taken on the line 3 3 ofFig. 1. Fig. 4 is a transverse section taken through the cab just backof the boiler. Fig. 5 is an enlarged transverse vertical section of therear end of the tender, taken through the feed-water chamber. Fig. 6 isa plan View looking into the feed-water chamber with the cover removed.Fig. 7 is a cross-section of the feed-water chamber, taken on the line 77 of Fig. 5. Fig. 8 is a cross-section of the feed-water chamber, takenon the lineSSof Fig. 5. Fig. 9 is an enlarged detail sectional view ofthe injector or device for imparting the heat to the feed-water andentraining the water into the feed-water chamber, the section beingtaken on the line 9 9 of Fig. 11. Fig. 10 is a side elevation thereoflooking from the left as viewed in Fig. 9; and Fig. 11 is a plan sectionthereof, taken on the line 11 ll of Fig. 9.

In illustrating my invention I have elected to show it in connectionwith a steam-boiler and tender of a locomotive, because this is one ofthe most difficult types of boilers to heat the feedwater, owing to thenecessity on the one hand of utilizing every available heat unit in theexhaust-steam for heating the water and on the other hand for utilizingthe force of the exhaust to produce the requisite draft for the furnace,thus making it incumbent upon any feed-water-heating device dependingupon exhaust-steam and employed in connection with a steam-boiler of alocomotive, to accomplish the object with but a fraction of the entireexhaust and to that end making it necessary to intimately commingle thesteam and water in order to transfer to the water substantially all ofthe heat units contained in that fraction. This cannot be done byordinary means and methods in the very limited space available on 10-comotives.

1 represents a tank, which may be of the usual or any suitableconstruction, excepting that in the rear end thereof or at some othersuitable point is situated a feed-water-purifying chamber or reservoir2, which preferably extends transversely of the rear end of the tenderand which has a water-inlet 3 at the bottom of one end, while the otherend is connected by valved pipe at with a suitable steam pump 5, whichsupplies the water through suitable connections to the boiler as needed.The inlet 3 is connected by a pipe or passage 6 with the outlet '7 of aninjector 8, (best shown in Figs. 9 to 11,) which is provided with asteam-inlet 9, connected by pipe or passage 10 with the exhaust of theengine, the exhaust-nozzle 11 being connected by pipe 12 with ahorizontal pipe 13, which extends along the outer side of the boiler andis connected to pipe 14, extending downwardly in the cab and havingsuitable connection to the pipe 10. For the sake of symmetry the pipe 13is duplicated on the other side of the boiler, as shown at 15, so thatthe pipes 13 15 may, if desired, be utilized as the hand-rails for therunning-boards. The steam-injector 8 is also provided with a water-inlet16, arranged at a point between the steam-inlet 9 and the outlet '7 andadjacent to the conical nozzle 17, as usual in steam-injectors, and thiswater-inlet 16 is connected by pipe or passage 18 to the end of thefeed-water chamber 2 opposite that in which the inlet 3 is situated, andthe pipe 18 is preferably carried upwardly within the feed-water chamber2 in the form of a stand-pipe or overflow, so that the water cannotdischarge into the pipe 18 until it has risen to a point near the top ofthe feed-water chamber. The water-inlet 16 is also connected by pipe orpassage 20 with the tank 21 of the tender 1, so that the Water in thetender-tank will when not restrained gravitate into the water-inlet 16of the injector.

With an apparatus thus constructed it will be seen that whenexhaust-steam is admitted to the inlet 9 of the injector the water fromthe tank 21 will be entrained into the inlet 16 and will be driventhrough the outlet 7 and the pipe 6 into the bottom of the chamber 2through the inlet 3 and will rise in the chamber 2, successivelytraversing vertical cells formed by removable plates or partitions 22,perforated at top, as shown at 23, and cut away at the bottom, as shownat 24, until the level reaches the top of the standpipe 19, whereupon itwill run down such stand-pipe and be drawn by the force of the steamthrough the pipe 18 back into the inlet 16 of the injector and againsent on its course or circuit through the pipe 6 and the verticalpassages of the chamber 2, thus repeatedly subjecting the same water tothe steam, and by thus compelling it to pass in a continuous circuit orcurrent through its circulating-passage constituted by the pipes 6, 18,and 19 and the chamber 2 intimately commingles the steam therewith andextracts from the steam all of its heat units and fully condenses thesteam into water at a temperature most suitable for injection into theboiler, and all this in a very limited space. It will also be seen thatinasmuch as the supply pipe or passage 20 from the tender-tank isconnected to the returning side of the circulating-passage, or, in otherwords, is connected to the same inlet of the injector as that to whichthe return-pipe 18 is connected, the swiftly-moving current returningthrough the pipe 18 will hold back the water from the tank of thetender, and as a consequence the feed-water chamber 2 will not bereplenished from the tender-tank until the Water in chamber 2 fallsbelow the top of the stand-pipe 19 or until the current returningthrough the pipe 18 is insufficient to supply the suction produced inthe inlet 16 of the injector by the exhaust-steam. Hence it will be seenthat the device is perfectly automatic in its ability to keep the supplyat a given level in the feedwater tank without depending upon the aid offloats or other valve mechanism liable to be injured or renderedineffectual by the severe jolting and hard usage to which they would besubjected in uses of this character.

When the injector is flooded, the force of the exhaust-steam alone maybe insuilicient in some instances to start the circulation through theaforesaid continuous circulatingpassage, and in order to provide forthis contingency the injector is supplied with a supplementalhigh-pressure steam-jet 25, which extends downwardly past thewater-inlet 16 and is connected by valved pipe 26 with the boiler, thussupplying the injector with sufficient pressure to set up thecirculation, which when once induced may be continued by theexhaust-steam.

The inlet 3 is of course provided with downwardly-seating check-valve 27to prevent back pressure in the injector, and the bottom of chamber 2may be provided with a draincock 27 to facilitate cleaning out.

The partitions 22 may be conveniently held in place by brackets 28,arranged opposite sides thereof, so that the partitions may be insertedfrom the top of the chamber 2, which is closed by any suitable cover 29,having vent 30 for the escape of air and gases liberated from the steamand water, the cover being loose.

The oil rises to the top of the chamber 2 above the perforations 23 andabove the top of pipe 19, whence it may be removed from time to time,and the partitions 22 being removable they may be readily cleansed ofthe scale and other deposit adhering thereto.

In some instances it may be necessary to filter the water before passingit to the boiler, and when such is the case the object maybeaccomplished by filling one or more of the cells or compartments formedby the plates 22 with some suitable filtrant 22.

Having thus described my invention, what IIO I claim as new therein, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a feed-water heater, the combination of a hot-water chamber,independent of the boiler or receptacle to be fed, a water-circulatingsystem embracing said chamber, an injector connected with saidcirculating system, a steam-pipe for supplying steam to the injector, awater-supply pipe for supplying water to said circulating system, andmeans to supply hot water from said tank to the boiler or receptacle tobe fed.

2. In a feed-water heater, the combination of a hot-water chamber, acirculating-pipe leading tosaid chamber, means to inject steam into saidcirculating-pipe, a return-pipe leading from the upper part of saidhot-water chamber to the means for injecting steam into thecirculating-pipe, and a water-supply pipe communicating with saidreturn-pipe, whereby a constant circulation of water will be effectedthrough said hot-water chamber, circulating-pipe and return-pipe whilethe level of the water in the chamber is maintained above the inlet tothe return-pipe, and water will be drawn from said supply-pipe into saidreturn-pipe and fed to the hot-water chamber whenever the level of thewater therein falls below said return-pipe inlet.

3. In a feed-water heater, the combination of a hot-water chamber, awater-circulating system embracing said chamber, means to inj ect steaminto said water-circulating system and to cause the water therein tocirculate through the hot-water chamber, whereby a contant circulationand heating of the water in said chamber may be etfected and meanscontrolled by the level of the water in said chamber to supply waterthereto when the contents fall below a certain level.

l. In a feed-water heater, the combination of a hot-water chamber, awater-circulating system embracing said chamber and having the returnconnection from said chamber located at a distance from the bottom,means to inject steam into said water circulating system and to causethe water therein to circulate through the hot-water chamber,whereby aconstant circulation and heating of the water in said chamber may beeffected while the water-level is maintained above the level of theoutlet from said chamber to the return connection, and means controlledby the level of the water in said chamber to supply water thereto whenthe contents fall below a certain level.

5. In a feed-water heater the combination of a hot-water chamber havinga plurality of removable partitions arranged in said chamher and forminga tortuous passage, a watercirculating system embracing said chamber andan injector for injecting steam into said circulating system to heat thewater and cause it to circulate therein.

6. In a feed-water heater the combination of a continuous watercirculating passage comprising a feed-water chamber having an overflowwhich empties into the return side of said passage, means for injectinga heating fluid into said passage in one direction for continuouslycirculating the water therein and a source of supply connected with saidreturn side of said passage whereby the re turning current will holdback the supply until the water in said chamber falls belowsaidoverflow, substantially as set forth.

7. In a feed-water heater the combination of asource of water-supply,afeed-water cham-- ber, an injector having its discharge connectedtherewith and a return-passage from said chamber and a water-supply fromsaid source both connected with the inlet of said injector whereby thecurrent from said chamber will hold back the supply until such currentbecomes insuflicient to supply the suction of the injector,substantially as set forth.

8. In a feed-water heater the combination of an injector having anexhaust-steam inlet, a water-inlet and an outlet for steam and water, ahigh-pressure jet discharging into said injector, and a feed-waterchamber connected with said outlet and water-inlet, substantially as setforth.

In testimony of which invention I have hereunto set my hand.

CHARLES H. ATKINS.

Witnesses:

RICHARD H. STACY, ISABELLA J. ATKINS.

